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The love affair continues: Philip Larkin’s Annus Mirabilis

It will be over soon, I promise. He only wrote 100 poems and two very short novels, I have devoured it all. And I’m leaving him, more and more often, for others. But bear with me for a few more verses…

Annus Mirabilis

Sexual intercourse began
In nineteen sixty-three
(Which was rather late for me)—
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles’ first LP

Up until then there’d only been

A sort of bargaining,
A wrangle for a ring,
A shame that started at sixteen
And spread to everything.

Then all at once the quarrel sank:
Everyone felt the same,
And every life became
A brilliant breaking of the bank,
A quite unlosable game.

So life was never better than
In nineteen sixty-three
(Though just too late for me)—
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles’ first LP

Philip LarkinHigh Windows, 1974

Enjoyed?

“Jane”

P.S. Despite the three-in-a-row Friday poetic assaults, I’m not really here. Nothing By The Book is taking a page from old school un-social media and doing a rerun summer, while I spend the hot days getting a tan, running through sprinkles, selling one book, writing another, reading two dozen more, neglecting my garden, falling in love, jumping off cliffs—you know. Everything but blogging. But, you get reruns of my favourite stuff (and, apparently, the occasional poem…), so everyone wins. Likely keeping up with Instagram—NothingByTheBook—connect there, if you like? Or Twitter—Follow @nothingbtbook or/and Follow @paddleink.

“I began in August nineteen sixty-three
which was rather early for me
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles’first LP (which I danced to
when I was two…)

Up until then, there’d only been

A sort of nothingness
A lack of existence
A deep conectedness with the universe
A seed of me

Then all at once “I” began
Nothing was going to be the same
Life became
A brilliant awakening
A chance to exist

So life began for me
In nineteen sixty-three
Never too late for me
Between the end of the Chatterley ban
And the Beatles’first LP”

I shall NOT hide under the bed today Ms Nothingbythebook! I just took back my mojo from Mr depression-on-legs and rewrote the book. Bollocks to hiding under the bed today! 😉 Nineteen sixty-three was a bloody good year!